“Right,” he muses before putting the blinker on to pull back onto the road.
Once we’re moving, I find Cole’s contact again and finally make the call I wasn’t brave enough to do before.
“Freya, is everything okay?” he answers, already sensing that things probably aren’t.
“I’m going to be a few minutes late,” I explain.
“Why? What’s wrong?” I can hear him moving in the background, and I really don’t think it’s him continuing to work out. “What do you need? Where are you?”
“Everything is fine. My car broke down, but I’m in an Uber, and I’ll be there soon. I just didn’t want you to worry.”
“Worry?” He balks. “Did an Uber just pick you up from the side of the road?”
My chest tightens.
“Yeah. It’s fine. If the traffic isn’t too bad, I might even be there right on time.” As I say this, I look at the clock. It’ll be amazing if that happens, but it does make me wonder if he’d have even noticed if I were a few minutes late. It’s not like he sits in the kitchen, looking at his watch and waiting for me.
Damn it. I’m screwing this up.
“I’d have come to get you. Why didn’t you call me?” My stomach knots at the hurt in his voice.
“I didn’t want to interrupt your morning. You have a routine and?—”
“Bullshit,” he snaps, making me jump. “I’d have forgotten about all of that and come and got you.”
“I know,” I whisper like a terrified child. “I just didn’t want you messing up your routine because of me.”
“Fuck my routine, Freya. Your safety is more important.”
My heart wants to soar at his words, but I know he’s only saying them out of concern for the woman who cooks his meals.
“Everything is okay. I’ll speak to the garage once I’ve sorted breakfast and—” I don’t need to look up to know the driver is glaring at me. I lied to him, and he knows it. “It’ll all be fixed by tonight.”
“You’re damn right it will. I’ll take you home tonight,” he states, leaving very little room for argument.
“O-okay.”
“No more rideshares to or from work, Freya. I mean it.”
I nod despite the fact that he can’t see me.
“I’ll see you soon,” he says, but the line is cut before I get a chance to respond.
I slump back in the seat, all the air rushing from my lungs.
The driver’s attention burns into me again, but I don’t look up. I might feel bad about lying to him, but he isn’t the one I’ve truly disappointed.
I should have just called him. But…there isn’t a single reason why I should take priority for him over his job.
“Your boss sure sounds protective of you,” the driver points out, unable to keep his mouth shut any longer. “When you said you couldn’t be late, I thought he was going to be an asshole.”
I shake my head, keeping my eyes locked on my lap.
“N-no, he’s not. He’s…incredible.”
My cell buzzes in my hand, and I startle.
Seeing Cole’s name, I open it immediately.
